Dellacqua hopes to continue form on Australian soil

NEWS ARTICLE

Photo: Martin SidorjakCasey Dellacqua (AUS)

The story of the Australian Open for the home media has been centred around an unlikely figure but one who loves to play in her native land.

Casey Dellacqua has advanced to the round of 16 at Melbourne Park for the first time in six years and the 28-year-old from Perth is hoping her form will continue when Australia plays Russia in the World Group first round on 8-9 February.

The Western Australian has made a mockery of the hot conditions in Melbourne, even stating that she loves the heat and would prefer it to be "a bit hotter".

Dellacqua has a good record in Fed Cup on home soil, losing just one rubber against Spain's Anabel Medina Garrigues in Adelaide and she's happy to be playing in Tasmania in the first round.

"We haven’t had a home tie for a while so it’s nice to be able to play in Australia," said Dellacqua. "We have got some experience of playing down in Hobart so looking forward to that tie.

"I really like the pace [of the court] there. Hobart is a great city. It's really nice and the people are lovely so i think it’s a great spot for us to play Russia.

With the team for Russia always changing, Dellacqua is hoping that her own nation's squad consistency will play in her favour.

"I think we’ve got a really good shot and we can make that step to winning a first tie in the World Group," she explained.

"We’ve got great team camaraderie, we enjoy playing Fed Cup for Australia. I enjoy playing in Australia full stop - it doesn’t matter where it is but obviously playing for Australa in Fed Cup is that much more special.

"It's great that we can play in Hobart and hopefully we’ll get a lot of people there to support us."